Seven newly elected judges arrive at Polish Constitutional Tribunal — RMF24
In Warsaw, seven judges of the Constitutional Tribunal elected by Poland's Sejm this year are in the institution's building. Judge Dariusz Szostak is on sick leave. At the same time, the tribunal's president, Bogdan Święczkowski, and his deputy, Bartłomiej Sochański, were heading to the building, but it was unknown whether they would be able to get inside, RMF24 reports.
Dispute over the tribunal's leadership
Judges Anna Korwin-Piotrowska and Professor Krystian Markiewicz confirmed to journalists that the judges elected this year are in the tribunal's building. Szucha Avenue, where the institution is located, remains blocked due to another day of protests near the building.
Korwin-Piotrowska, who was announced as the person managing the tribunal's work, said that the measures taken against Święczkowski and Sochański do not constitute a legal suspension. According to her, this concerns an immediate break in the performance of judicial duties. She referred to Article 130 of the law on the organization of common courts.
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Events overnight near the building
Tensions around the Constitutional Tribunal escalated on the evening of October 30 and overnight into October 31. Information about a break in the performance of duties by Święczkowski and Sochański was published on the institution's website, while Korwin-Piotrowska was named as the person managing the tribunal's work.
Polish President Karol Nawrocki cut short a trip to Senegal and arrived at the tribunal's building overnight. RMF24 notes that videos appeared in the media which, according to the outlet, show his forced entry into the building, a dispute between representatives of the president and judges elected by the current Sejm, as well as scuffles between protesters.
Representatives of the right-wing political camp, including the president, describe the actions concerning the tribunal's leadership as a coup d'état. The governing coalition, in turn, says it is restoring the rule of law after a years-long crisis in the Constitutional Tribunal.
